Thursday, April 23, 2009

My Bloody Valentine | Palladium Ballroom | Dallas, Tx 4-22-09

Dave Chappelle had a skit on his show that explained the differences between what white folks and black folks liked in music. It was freaking hilarious, and basically showed how much rhythm and style black folks have when it comes to music, and how us white folks dig the noisy guitar-driven stuff. So, as I was standing there sipping on a Crown and Coke and blissfully taking the pummeling from MBV's guitar barrage, it dawned on me that they are in fact the epitome of white folks music, and that is not at all a bad thing.

MBV are loud, somewhat aggressive in a non-threatening way, and noisy as hell with the vocals and rhythm section taking backseat to the effects pedal-chained guitars, a fact that is even more evident in their live show than it is on their albums, which are noisy and raw enough in and of themselves. As I stood there taking it all in, I noticed something very interesting, people were hardly moving. At first I thought maybe the crowd wasn't into it, but that wasn't it at all. Everybody was mesmerized, as MBV's sound is hypnotic, repetitive, and in an emotional way, moving.

Thus, attending an MBV show is to experience a ritual. The sounds as evinced by the pulsating and subtly rhythmic guitars mix with the sights as shown by the customary background film footage and the slight rocking, trance-like movements of the band; both coming together in the end, producing a deafening wall of noise which is completed by syncopated flashes of light which cover the darkness of the motionless crowd. The experience is not only visual and aural, it is physical, as your entire body is actually shaken and the hair on your head and arms is blown back by an actual breeze that is produced by the huge wall of guitar feedback, much like the blows of a concert kick-drum, but somehow more surreal and limitless.

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I was planning on posting some photos here, but forgot my camera at the hotel, so all I got where some crappy cell phone pics that aren't even worth publishing here. However, here's some good photos I found of flickr you can check out if your interested.

Honestly, I often vacillate on whether or not to post some of these recordings, as I haven't come to the conclusion that I have the right to say they should be shared in this manner. That being said, many times they are of such limited quantity, I have to wonder if the artists mean for them to be shared via the net, as that is the only way for them to be disseminated to a larger audience. So here goes. If any artist featured here want any of these files deleted, just say the word.